Jacqueline Jossa has opened up about her lifestyle change as she has focused on going to the gym more and getting fit (Image: BANG Showbiz.)Get daily celeb exclusives and behind the scenes house tours direct to your inboxMore Newsletters SubscribePlease enter a valid emailSomething went wrong, please try again later.More NewslettersWe use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. More infoThank you for subscribing!We have more newslettersShow me See OurPrivacy Notice See OurPrivacy Notice×Group 28 Get daily celeb exclusives and behind the scenes house tours direct to your inboxInvalid emailSomething went wrong, please try again later.Sign UpNo thanks, closeWe use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. More info×Group 28Thank you for subscribing!We have more newslettersShow MeNo thanks, closeSee our
Privacy Notice Jacqueline Jossa is feeling better than ever. Mainly because the 31-year-old, who has returned to EastEnders to reprise her role as Lauren Branning, has been on a health kick of late. Earlier this year, she posted a picture of herself at the gym with a pal, and it appears her workouts have been paying off. Not just physically, but mentally, too. “It was more for my head, for my mental health, to be honest,” she confides to OK! at this year’s National Television Awards at London’s O2 arena.
Jacqueline admits she is not only going to the gym for her physical health, but mental health too
“And I’m just loving it. I didn’t think I’d be able to stick to it, because I’m generally one of those that goes for a week and then stops, but I’m truly loving it. I don’t know who I am. I shock myself sometimes.” Jac has a lot to smile about. As well as her new-found confidence when it comes to working out, she has returned to her roots as Lauren on Albert Square. It’s a place she has spent a lot of her life, having joined the show at 17. And she said earlier this year, “Walford holds a special place in my heart, so it really does feel like coming home.”
She recently returned to EastEnders as Lauren Branning
(Image: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron)
Jac tells us she’s excited about seeing the old faces who are returning for the build-up to the show’s 40th anniversary next year, including Tracy-Ann Oberman as Chrissie Watts and Louisa Lytton as Ruby Allen. “Yes, some old faces are back in Albert Square,” she says. “Some absolute legends in the game, so that’s really cool. I love it.” To celebrate the big 4-0, BBC bosses announced earlier this month that they’ve been planning a special commemorative episode, which will be filmed live. A statement from the show’s exec said,: “While we’re still keeping the finite details of the 40th close to our chest, I can promise that it will be an unmissable week full of shocking twists that will change Albert Square, and the lives of those who live in it, forever.”
Jacqueline shares two daughters with Dan Osborne
(Image: Instagram)
Talking about the live episode, Jacqueline admits, “We only found out about it a couple of hours before you guys did. I think there are many things that EastEnders does well and a live episode is definitely one of them. I think it would be silly not to. It was kind of in the air and everyone was guessing whether we would, whether we’d do anything different to mark it. But it’s our 40th – we’ve got to go big or go home!” Jac has a supportive family cheering her on at home: husband and former TOWIE star Dan Osborne, 33, and their two children – Ella, nine, and six-year-old Mia. And we’re keen to know how she manages to juggle the long hours of filming and family time. “You know, I thought it would be really difficult, but it isn’t, it all just… fits,” she tells us. “Mostly because EastEnders just feels like home to me. You know, like putting on a pair of old shoes and they just fit straight away? It’s just what I needed, actually. It’s all worked out really well.” And it appears her daughters could follow in her footsteps. Jac, who was left shaken after thieves raided her holiday villa in Marbella, runs her own performing arts school – the Jac Jossa Academy – and Ella and Mia are regular students. However, she says they’re unaware of their mum’s fame in a “sweet way”.
Jacqueline has been hitting the gym this year after undergoing a lifestyle overhaul
(Image: Instagram/Jacqueline Jossa)
“They know that it’s not real,” she says. “They’ve seen bits of me on TV, but it will change when they get older. They’re only little.” As well as starring in EastEnders, the mum-of-two took part in I’m A Celeb… in 2019 – and was crowned Queen of the Jungle. The recent All Stars spin-off in South Africa was a huge hit, and we’d love to see her back in the camp if another series is commissioned. But there’s disappointing news for her fans. “To be honest, I don’t really think I’d have the time,” she says. “The jungle was one of the best things I’ve ever done, but you know when something’s been so amazing, you don’t know if doing it again would ruin it, all the memories… I don’t know.” So would she do any other reality shows? Possibly don some sequins and compete for the Glitterball in Strictly? “Well, I can’t dance…” she says. “I’ve always said ‘absolutely not’ to Strictly, but, as I’m getting older, I’m like, ‘Wouldn’t it be funny, wouldn’t my kids enjoy it?’ I don’t know, it’s a little bit different now. The kids could come and watch.” We think you‘d be fab-u-lous, Jac!Story SavedYou can find this story in My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.Follow OK! MagazineFacebookTwitterCommentMore OnDan OsborneJacqueline JossaEastEndersIm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here
